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An epic trek on the Overland Track through Tasmania’s most breathtaking scenery

Take on the challenge of Australia’s most famous trek – the Cradle Mountain Overland track – and take in some of Tasmania’s most stunning scenery. With two expert mountain guides at your side, you’ll make your way through temperate rainforest and groves of eucalypts, across alpine moors and through valleys, skirt the edges of bright blue lakes and take in views of waterfalls and towering peaks in the distance. Camp on the edges of historic huts under star-filled skies, wake up to dramatic landscapes and take the chance to tackle side trips like summitting Cradle Mountain and the island’s highest peak Mt Ossa. This active adventure with Intrepid is one of the best ways to take in an iconic trek and landscape.

Start
Launceston, Australia
Finish
Launceston, Australia
Destination
Australia
Style
Basix
Theme
Walking & Trekking
Code
PTXC
Physical rating
Ages
Min 16
Group size
Min 1, Max 10

Why you'll love this trip

  • With everything taken care of, you’re free to make the most of the incredible scenery and views as you make your way along one of Australia’s most iconic hiking trails.

  • Leave all the organisation to us – from tickets and permits to camping gear - comfortable all-season tents and cooking equipment are all provided

  • Make the most of the local knowledge of two expert mountain guides along the way, and you’ll never take a wrong turn.

  • Enjoy the flexibility to tackle the trek as you like – the main track for a more leisurely hike, or add on a side trip like summitting Cradle Mountain or Mt Ossa for an extra challenge.

Is this trip right for you?

  • You will need to carry your own gear on this trek. Expect the weight of your pack to be up to around 15 kg. This includes a portion of the food for the trip, and a share of a tent which will be around 1.4 kg.

  • This is a camping trip and you will be required to set up camp each night. Facilities are basic (bush camping toilets, no showers)

  • This trip involves plenty of walking over varied terrain and is best suited to travellers with a great level of mobility. Good footwear, clothing for all types of Tasmanian weather, plus perhaps walking poles are recommended. Details on physical activities and a packing list can be found in the trip notes.

Dove Lake in Cradle Mountain National Park in Tasmania, Australia
Passenger walking a trail in beautiful landscape in Cradle Mountain, Tasmania
Intrepid group and tour leaders taking a hard earned break on the Cradle Mountain Overland Track, Tasmania
Intrepid group walking together in beautiful scenery on the Cradle Mountain Overland Track, Tasmania
Two passengers smiling for a photo on the Cradle Mountain Overland Track, Tasmania
A wombat in Cradle Mountain National Park in Tasmania, Australia
The summit of Cradle Mountain in Tasmania, Australia

Itinerary
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Welcome to one of Australia’s greatest walks. Your adventure begins with a pickup at 7am. Make your way west from Launceston, through picturesque scenery, to start the Overland Track at Ronny Creek in Cradle Valley. Cross a small grass plain, passing Crater Creek, Crater Lake, and make your way up to Marion’s Lookout for sweeping views, from where you can see the iconic Cradle Mountain and the curved Dove Lake. If weather and time allow, there is also the opportunity to summit Cradle Mountain today. The track continues past the historic Kitchen Hut, with its unusual double story design, and you’ll traverse the shoulder of Cradle Mountain surrounded by Tasmanian snow gums. Over 700 million years ago the ground beneath your feet was shaped by glaciers grinding through the landscape. Continue on to the Cradle Cirque, passing the turnoff to Barn Bluff, and descend into Waterfall Valley, where you will set up camp for the night.
Accommodation
  • Bush camping (with limited facilities) (1 night)
Optional Activities
  • Overland Track - Cradle Mountain Summit - Free
Meals Included
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Special Information
Please note that the initial welcome meeting will take place at 3pm the day BEFORE departure at the Macpac store, 22-26 Kingsway, Launceston. It is important that you bring your gear to this meeting as our team will check the suitability of your gear for the trek. Pick-up on Day 1 will be at 7am from your accommodation. Please advise your booking agent of your pick up location prior to departure. Today’s walk is approximately 10km/6.2mi, 4-5 hours.

Above Waterfall Valley is Barn Bluff, which juts out of the landscape in a distinctive cone-shaped peak. This morning you’ll have the opportunity to climb the bluff if the conditions are right, before continuing on to Lake Windermere in the afternoon. Waterfall Valley is, unsurprisingly enough, full of beautiful cascades, and you’ll pass them as the track undulates across moorlands scattered with pencil pines, myrtles and snow gums. Look out for Tasmanian Devils, echidnas and wombats – though you may see the latter’s distinctive cube shaped poop more often than the mammals themselves. As you crest the moorland you’ll get a view across Lake Windermere, whose dark colour is caused by nutrients and oils leaking from the surrounding grass into the water. Make your way around the shore of the lake to tonight’s campsite, nestled in a scattered forest.
Accommodation
  • Bush camping (with limited facilities) (1 night)
Optional Activities
  • Overland Track - Barn Bluff Climb - Free
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Special Information
Today’s walk is approximately 8 kilometres, 3-4 hours, not including the optional side trip to climb the bluff.

You’ve worked your way up to the longest walk of the trip today. Begin with a walk through lightly timbered forest and across buttongrass moorlands to the lookout at Forth Gorge. In the distance the peaks of mounts Oakleigh, Ossa, Pelion East and West, as well as the Du Cane Range, pepper the horizon. Follow some small ascents and descents into the forest glade of Frog Flats, a wet section of forest crossed by the River Forth that’s home to some beautifully coloured mosses and fungi. Climb through forest to Pelion Plains, where the Forth Valley Track diverts off to Old Pelion Hut, which was built by copper miners at the very end of the 19th century. For the next 20 or so years, cattle drovers and trappers plied their trade here, before the area was declared a scenic reserve in 1922. Continue along the shore of Douglas Creek to New Pelion Hut, the largest of the track’s huts, which sits at the junction of the Overland and Arm River tracks. You'll set up camp nearby the hut.
Accommodation
  • Bush camping (with limited facilities) (1 night)
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Special Information
Today’s walk is approximately 17 kilometres, 6-7 hours.

Begin today with a gradual climb up to Pelion Gap (1126 m). Here the track hits a crossroads with Mt Pelion to the east and towering Mt Ossa, Tasmania’s highest peak at 1617 metres, to the west. If the weather’s right, there will be the option to climb either of the peaks today. Both summits boast amazing views of the national park and beyond its boundaries, and are well worth the extra effort. From the Pelion Gap crossroads the track passes through the glaciated Pinestone Valley and on to Kia Ora Hut, which sits on a creek of the same name and is nestled below the Ducane Range and Cathedral Mountain on the opposite side.
Accommodation
  • Bush camping (with limited facilities) (1 night)
Optional Activities
  • Overland Track - Mt Pelion Summit - Free
  • Overland Track - Mt Ossa Summit - Free
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Special Information
Today’s walk is approximately 9 kilometres, 4 hours. Allow 3-4 additional hours for the Mt Ossa or Mt Pelion East side trip.

Leave Kia Ora Creek and make your way through myrtle beech rainforest to Du Cane Hut, built in 1910 out of King Billy Pine by a trapper as a base for his trade. Further down the track you will take a side trip to see the falls of D’Alton, Fergusson and Hartnett, which tumble into the Mersey River in spectacular fashion, especially after recent rainfall. Back on the main track, the path climbs steadily to Du Cane Gap (1070 m), where Mt Geryon and the Acropolis (1471 m) of the Du Cane Range are the peaks that dominate the views. From here the track descends through eucalypt forest to Windy Ridge Hut, the newest hut on the track. After setting up camp it's your spot to share stories on the final night of the trip.
Accommodation
  • Bush camping (with limited facilities) (1 night)
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Special Information
Today’s walk is approximately 10 kilometres, 5 hours.

Welcome to the final day of your Overland Track adventure. Leaving Windy Ridge camp, descend with the track down the valley of temperate rainforest and eucalypt forest to the Narcissus River. Pass the path which splits off to take walkers to the base of the Du Cane Range and Pine Valley Hut, the base for access to the Acropolis and the Labyrinth. Follow the track down to a suspension bridge over the Narcissus River and the end is in sight – Lake St Clair and the finish of the Overland Track. Give yourself a huge pat on the back and your legs a rest with a ferry ride across the lake to Cynthia Bay. Jump back in the van for the ride back to Launceston, where your trip comes to an end, arriving around 6 pm this evening.
Meals Included
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
Special Information
Today’s walk is approximately 10 kilometres, 4 hours. Your trip finishes upon arrival back in Launceston at around 6pm this evening. Please take this into consideration when booking onward travel.
Want to tailor this itinerary?

Meals

5 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 5 dinners

Transport

walking, Private vehicle, Ferry

Accommodation

Bush camping (with limited facilities) (5 Nights)

Dates & availability

Trip departures are unavailable.

There are currently no scheduled departures on our Trek the Cradle Mountain Overland Track trip. If you are interested in other trips in the region visit one of the links below.

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Important notes

Travellers on Intrepid trips are required to produce proof of full vaccination against COVID-19. Read details here.

PRE-DEPARTURE MEETING
A pre-departure meeting will take place at 3pm the day BEFORE departure at the Macpac store, 22-26 Kingsway, Launceston. It is important that you bring your gear to this meeting as our team will check the suitability of your gear for the trek. Please advise us if you are not able to make this.

HIKING GEAR
It is essential that you read the Packing List in our Essential Trip Information, and that you bring all necessary items. Backpack, rainwear, sleeping bag and sleeping mat – all these items are essential for this trip and can be hired locally if you do not wish to bring your own. Please speak to your travel consultant as all these items must be requested prior to travel.

CAMPING
This trip is a camping trip. You will be carrying your own tent and will set up camp each night. Solo travellers will sleep in a cosy one person tent for the duration of the trek. Facilities are very basic.

BACKPACKING
You will need to carry your own gear on this trek. Expect the weight of your pack to be around up to 15 kg. This includes a portion of the food for the trip, and a share of a tent which will be around 1.4 kg.

STARTING & ENDING TIME
Pick-up will be from 7am from your central Launceston accommodation. Please advise your booking agent of your preferred location prior to departure and confirm with our team at the pre-departure meeting the day prior. The trip will end with an arrival back into Launceston at around 6pm on the last day. Please take this into consideration when booking onward travel.

Essential trip information

Want an in-depth insight into this trip? Essential Trip Information provides a detailed itinerary, visa info, how to get to your hotel, what's included - pretty much everything you need to know about this adventure and more.

View Essential Trip Information

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